Day 1

COCHIN – BOMBAY

  • Benny‘s Discover Africa- Kilimanjaro and Masai Mara Tour begins
  • Mount Kilimanjaro, the Monarch of Africa
  • Benny‘s Discover Africa- Kilimanjaro and Masai Mara Tour begin. Assemble @ Kochi International Airport and arrive at Mumbai International Airport on 05 Aug early morning.

Day 2

BOMBAY- NAIROBI

  • Welcome to Nairobi, Kenya
    • Kenya Airways Flight KQ205 departed for Nairobi at 06.45 hrs. And arrive Nairobi, Kenya Airport at 10.30 hrs. Upon arrival, after emigration and customs formalities meet our airport assistant and a warm welcome awaits you upon exiting the terminal.
    • On arrival, all the guests will have a short Meet & Greet session by Benny‘s Royal Tour Manager. Later meet safari driver guides and after loading your luggage into the 4 x 4 Safari Land Cruisers you will depart for Lake Elementaita.
  • Rift Valley View Point
    • On your way you will stopover at the Rift Valley ViewPoint where you will look into the Great Rift Valley to see some of its features including Lake Naivasha and Mount Longonot. Lake Naivasha is a large freshwater lake situated at an elevation of 1,884m, Lake Naivasha is the highest lake within the Great Rift Valley.
    • Mount Longonot is a stratovolcano located southeast of Lake Naivasha in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya, Africa. It is thought to have last erupted in the 1860s. Its name is derived from the Maasai word Oloonong'ot, meaning "steep ridges". Later proceed to Lake Elementaita, one of the soda ash lakes of the Great Rift Valley, where you will arrive for check-in lodge, freshen up, followed by lunch, and relax.
  • Lake Elementaita Walking Tour
    • After your late afternoon tea/coffee you will be dead for a guided nature walk to see the flora & fauna of this birdwatchers‘ paradise. Lake Elementaita is one of the alkaline lakes of the Great Rift Valley, a perfect home for thousands of flamingos attracted here by the lake's crustacean and insect larvae and on its suspended blue-green algae. This area of breath- taking beauty, also home to many rare species of animals, is just a 30-minute drive to the more famous Lake Nakuru.
  • Boat ride in Lake Naivasha
    • Later we transferred to Lake Naivasha National Park approximately 80 kilometers north-west of Nairobi City. Lake Naivasha is an excellent tourist attraction and draws numerous animals and bird species closer to its shores. Here we will get time for boating to explore the birds and animals in Naivasha Lake. A boat ride on Lake Naivasha takes you close up with the hippos in the water and you will be able to watch them at a close point as they rest among the reeds. There are also hundreds of birds to see in the lake including the famous fish eagle and the cormorants. More than 450 bird species have been identified in the area. The largest populations are great white pelicans and lesser and greater flamingos. Approximately 90% of all of Kenya‘s black-necked grebes and cape teals are found at the lake, as well as maccoa duck, the critically threatened great crested grebe, great egret, Shining Sunbird, Slender-billed greenbul, and many more. Enjoy magnificent, picturesque sundown at the viewpoint.
    • Later return back to Lodge and enjoy your time in Lodge. Dinner and overnight stay in Lodge near Elementaita Lake.
  • Overnight stay : Lake Naivasha Country club or similar in Elementaita
  • Meals : Breakfast on board , Lunch and Dinner at Lodge.

Day 3

MASAI MARA TOUR

  • After breakfast at Lodge, check out and after loading your luggage into the 4 x 4 Safari Land Cruiser you will depart Masai Mara. The Maasai Mara National Reserve, also known as Masai Mara or the Mara, is a 583-square-mile protected area for wildlife. Visitors typically head here to witness the majestic, natural phenomenon of The Great Wildebeest Migration between July and October in almost everyone‘s bucket list. On your way, you will stop over at Narok town for a break before proceeding to the reserve where you will arrive at the lodge to check-in followed by lunch.
  • Great Migration in Masai Mara, the greatest wildlife traveling roadshow on earth.
    • After lunch we transfer to Masai Mara National Reserve for afternoon game drive in 4 x 4 Safari Land Cruisers to witness The Great Wildebeest Migration, one of The Seven Natural Wonders of The World in the plains of East Africa- the world‘s most thrilling, intriguing and spectacular displays of wildlife behavior. The Masai Mara National Park and Serengeti are the largest ecosystems and geographical regions in Africa, spanning from northern Tanzania to Masai Mara in Kenya. The protected area within the region includes approximately 31510 km2 of land with approximately 2 million animal populations. These two National parks result in an incredible safari and together form what no other safari in Africa can. From July onwards millions of animals will migrate from Serengeti in Tanzania towards Masai Mara, Kenya in search of grass and water. The wildebeests cross around 1,000 miles (1,609 kilometers) of land. The main migrates are around 1.7 million wildebeest, four lakh Thomson gazelle, three lakh zebra, and twelve thousand elands. This is one of the most phenomenal natural spectacles and the largest terrestrial mammal migration in the world, which helps secure it as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa, and as one of the ten natural travel wonders of the world.
    • Later transferred to Lodge. Free for leisure. Dinner and overnight stay at Lodge in Masai Mara.
  • Overnight Stay : Mara Sentrim or similar in Masai Mara
  • Meals : Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at Lodge.

Day 4

FULL DAY MIGRATION TOUR

  • After breakfast at Lodge transfer to Safari Land Cruiser for an unlimited game drive and Migration tour from 6.00 hrs to 18.00hrs to Masai Mara National Park. Masai Mara is home to some of the most abundant wildlife populations in the world. Sightings of the ‗Big 5‘ (elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard and rhino), along with cheetah and several others are almost guaranteed. You will explore the reserve in search of its rhinos, elephants, elusive leopards, lions and other plains game. The reserve is world-renowned for its exceptional populations of lions, African leopards, cheetahs, elephants and black rhinos.
  • Great opportunity to witness the Largest Terrestrial Mammal Migration on Earth.
    • Later we will transfer to the Mara River, Talek River and Grumeti rivers area to witness the Great Migration of animals take place every year between July to August in Kenya and Tanzania border.
    • Large number of tourists from all over the world visit Kenya and Tanzania to witness the natural spectacles and the largest terrestrial mammal migration on earth. This is considered as one of The Seven Natural Wonders of The World, over two million wildebeest, zebras, gazelles and other animals will travel from the Serengeti into Kenya's Maasai Mara in pursuit of greener pastures. The sheer volumes of wildebeest, zebra, and gazelles is a wonder in itself, with 1.3 million wildebeest and 300,000 zebras taking part in the largest herd movement of animals in the world — so large in fact, that it can be seen from space.
  • River crossing is the must-see event during Migration
    • The river crossing is a must-see event here during the migration. During the season large numbers of wildebeest, zebras, and gazelles will pass through Grumeti, Mara River and Talek rivers in search of grass. The Grumeti River in Tanzania and the Mara River in Kenya are infamous for the ferocious crocodiles lurking below the surface. Patience is needed to witness this dramatic river crossing spectacle.
  • The herd eagerly waits for one of their comrades to take the first step. However, it is quite a scary prospect going first, there are predators to watch out for, with crocodiles in the river and lion and other big cat waiting on the other side of the river to pick off the weaker of the herd. The brave wildebeest takes their first step or rather jumps into the river, causing a cascading movement of the whole herd -one following the other in a simultaneous effect, this is a must-see event during migration. This is a feast time for animals like lions, leopards, cheetahs and other carnivores and they are waiting for these months with eager anticipation.
  • Around 250,000 migrating animals will have died either at the hands of these carnivores or from fatigue and hunger. During the wildebeest migration, you will witness how the constant battle for survival makes the Migration Season a particularly exhilarating time to visit Kenya.
  • Maasai Village Tour
    • Here we will visit the local Maasai Village. A tour to the Maasai Village tour offers you a memorable encounter with the local Maasai people in their homesteads. They are the caretakers of the land. They are famous nomadic pastoralists who majorly depend on grazing cattle. The Maasai people reside in the boundaries of Maasai Mara national reserve thus sparing a few hours of your mara safari to visit these locals is such a breath-taking excursion. This Maasai village tour while on your safari to Maasai Mara national reserve will enable you to spend some time in this Maasai Village interacting with the locals while learning more about their unique cultural practices as they demonstrate more about their lifestyle, standards of living, and take part in some of the cultural practices like milking, making ghee and many more. Later return back to Lodge. Dinner and overnight stay at Lodge in Masai Mara.
  • Overnight Stay : Mara Sentrim or similar in Masai Mara
  • Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner at Lodge.

Day 5

MASAI MARA – NAIROBI

  • After early breakfast at Lodge free time for early morning game drive or optional Balloon safari with champagne bush breakfast. In this tour you will be able to see the complete migration from the Serengeti and Mara region of East Africa. Balloon ride is one of the memorable experiences, allowing you to drift in silence above the splendor of the plains and enjoy a bird‘s eye view of the wildlife theater. You take off in the wee hours of the morning, float in the sky, drifting with the whim of the wind, overlooking the plains, just in time to experience a breath-taking sunrise and catch a bird‘s eye view of the reserve (optional).
  • Balloon Tour
    • After the early morning game drive and safari tour you will drive back to the lodge for your full breakfast and free time for leisure at safari lodge.
  • Nairobi city Tour
    • Later transferred to Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya. Nairobi is Africa's most influential cities, and vital commercial and financial regional hub, home to the regional headquarters of various major international companies and organizations. Nairobi is home of the Kenyan Parliament Buildings and hosts thousands of Kenyan businesses and over 100 major international companies and organizations, including the United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations Office at Nairobi. On arrival we visit the sights such as the KICC, the tallest building in Kenya, parliament buildings, bombast sight, Uhuru National Park, Tirupati Temple, made by Indian devotees, local residential area and Maasai Market and some shopping malls..etc.(subject to the availability). Then we will then drive back to the hotel where you will spend the rest of the night. Dinner and overnight stay at a hotel in Nairobi.
  • Overnight Stay : The concord Hotel or similar in Nairobi
  • Meals : Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at Lodge.

Day 6

AMBOSELI – KILIMANJARO TOUR

  • Visit Amboseli National Park famous for big tusked elephants
    • After continental breakfast, check out and after loading your luggage into the 4 x 4 Safari Land Cruiser you will transfer to Amboseli National Park. On arrival at the Amboseli Park enjoy a game drive en-route to the lodge where you will arrive to check in followed by lunch. After lunch you will relax and freshen up before your afternoon game drive of the park. Amboseli national park is one of the perfect tourist destinations that you ought not to miss during your Kenya Safari. The park boasts a wide range of animal species ranging from large herds of elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, lions. Amboseli National Park, a natural wonderland and is an excellent place to view the Big Five. Kenya‘s second most popular national park after the Masai Mara National Reserve, Amboseli was declared a UNESCO-Mab Biosphere Reserve in 1991. Amboseli national park is a home to a large concentration of wildlife including African elephant, African buffalo, impalas, lion, zebra, and wildebeest among other African animals; among the animals the park is more famous for habiting a large population of elephants. Amboseli Park is also a home to a number of birds estimated to be 400 species which include African swamp hen, Common redshank and Yellow-necked spurfowl and many more.
    • Visit Amboseli National Park famous for big tusked elephants
      • After continental breakfast, check out and after loading your luggage into the 4 x 4 Safari Land Cruiser you will transfer to Amboseli National Park. On arrival at the Amboseli Park enjoy a game drive en-route to the lodge where you will arrive to check in followed by lunch. After lunch you will relax and freshen up before your afternoon game drive of the park. Amboseli national park is one of the perfect tourist destinations that you ought not to miss during your Kenya Safari. The park boasts a wide range of animal species ranging from large herds of elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, lions. Amboseli National Park, a natural wonderland and is an excellent place to view the Big Five. Kenya‘s second most popular national park after the Masai Mara National Reserve, Amboseli was declared a UNESCO-Mab Biosphere Reserve in 1991. Amboseli national park is a home to a large concentration of wildlife including African elephant, African buffalo, impalas, lion, zebra, and wildebeest among other African animals; among the animals the park is more famous for habiting a large population of elephants. Amboseli Park is also a home to a number of birds estimated to be 400 species which include African swamp hen, Common redshank and Yellow-necked spurfowl and many more.
  • Majestic views of Mount Kilimanjaro from Amboseli National Park
    • Amboseli National Park is the best place to view the Kilimanjaro Mountains on a clear day. The monarch of Africa, Mt. Kilimanjaro is not only Africa‘s tallest peak, but also the world‘s tallest free-standing mountain. The summit, named Uhuru Point, is 5,895 meters (19,341 feet) above sea level. Most high mountains are part of ranges, such as Mount Everest‘s Himalayan Mountain Range. These are formed in a process called plate tectonics. Kilimanjaro is formed as a result of volcanic activity and passes through the exact center of the equator and divides earth in half. Mount Kilimanjaro lies just 205 miles from the equator, in the country of Tanzania. When early explorers reported seeing glaciers on the top of Kilimanjaro, people did not believe them as they thought it was impossible for ice to form so close to the hot, equatorial sun. Scientists now believe that the glaciers shrink and then regrow during the planet‘s ice ages. Mount Kilimanjaro was first climbed in 1889 by a German geologist Hans Meyer, an Austrian climber Ludwig Purtscheller and a local guide Yohani Kinyala Lauwo. Now approximately 30,000 people climb Kilimanjaro every year. Later transferred to Lodge. Dinner and overnight stay at Lodge.
  • Overnight Stay : Kibo Safari Lodge or similar in Amboseli
  • Meals : Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at Lodge.

Day 7

KENYA – TANZANIA

  • After continental breakfast, check out and drive through the Kilimanjaro Mountain area and reach the Namanga border check post. Namanga is a town divided by the Tanzania- Kenya border. Here you will meet our Tanzanian representative who will help you to clear the customs and immigration procedures. Welcome to Tanzania. Tanzania, an East African country situated just south of the Equator borders with Uganda and Kenya. National parks, majestic Mount Kilimanjaro, Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park are the main attractions of the country. On arrival we will transfer to Arusha. Arusha is a city in East Africa's Tanzania, located at the base of volcanic Mt. Meru and Africa's highest peak, 5,895m Mt. Kilimanjaro, lying some 100 kilometers northeast. Arusha is known as the safari capital of Tanzania's Northern Safari Circuit. It's a bustling city filled with an interesting mix of markets, chaotic traffic, old colonial buildings and modern conveniences and an array of great restaurants. Here we will have our lunch.
    • After lunch you will drive to Karatu, under the peak of Oldeani located at the south east rim of Ngorongoro. Ngorongoro is famous for Ngorongoro crater located about 180 km west of Arusha. This game rich crater is a must see on Tanzania‘s northern safari circuit also featuring Serengeti, lake Manyara, Tarangire and Mount Kilimanjaro. On arrival in Karatu you will transfer to the lodge. Check in late afternoon and spend the evening at leisure as you enjoy the various facilities and activities offered by the lodge.
  • Overnight Stay : Farms of Dream Lodge or similar in Karatu
  • Meals : Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at Lodge.

Day 8

NGORONGORO TOUR

  • Explore the Ngorongoro Crater, the ―Eighth Natural Wonder of the World
    • After early breakfast at Lodge transfer to safari Land Cruiser to explore the Eighth Natural Wonder of the World‖ the Ngorongoro Crater for morning and evening game drive. The Ngorongoro Crater is the world‘s largest intact volcanic caldera and a famous safari destination in Africa with the highest density of wildlife. The Ngorongoro is a deep volcanic crater, the largest un-flooded and unbroken caldera in the world. The Ngorongoro Crater was formed when a large volcano erupted and collapsed on itself. This explosion created a caldera approximately two and a half million years ago. When it was a volcano, it‘s thought to have been a similar size to Mount Kilimanjaro, one of the world‘s highest mountains. Estimates of the volcano‘s original height vary between 4,500 to 5,800 meters. The crater itself is about 610 meters deep and 260 kilometers squared and covered with flat green and almost treeless grassy plains, the Ngorongoro Crater is a breath-taking natural wonder.
  • Ngoro Ngoro and the Great Migration, Experiencing some of our Planet‘s Greatest Natural Wonders.
    • Every year, the grass plains around the crater play host to the herds of the Great Migration from December to March, numbering close to two million wildebeest, zebra and other antelope from Masai Mara and Serengeti Parks occupy the short-grass plains that spread over the lower northern slopes of the Ngorongoro Crater highlands and around Olduvai Gorge. This sudden abundance of prey attracts many different predators, including lion, cheetah, hyena and the endangered African wild dog. This density of wildlife makes the crater the best place in Tanzania to see the Big Five. Around late January or February, the herds occupy the short-grass plains that spread over the lower northern slopes of the Ngorongoro Crater highlands and around Olduvai Gorge.
  • Ngorongoro, a paradise for animals due to its dazzling beauty
    • The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is home to an incredible abundance and diversity of wildlife, including Grant‘s and Thomson‘s gazelles, wildebeest, zebra and large herds of buffalo. The Ngorongoro Crater alone sustains around 30,000 large game animals, ranging from leopard, cheetah, elephant and hyena to warthog, buffalo and impala. It‘s also one of the best places to see the endangered black. The region has welcomed numerous famous people including Prince William, Bill Clinton and the Queen of Denmark. Visitors to Ngorongoro account for approximately 60% of the 770,000 who travel to Tanzania each year. The visitor will not regret their time in Ngorongoro which still evokes images of the Garden of Eden with animals of all kinds living side by side in this impressive and unique habitat.
  • Maasai Warriors, the caretakers of Ngorongoro
    • Apart from the ever-present wild animal population, it‘s a common picture to see red dressed Maasai warriors descending into the crater in the early morning hours. Accompanied by the jingle of cowbells they take their hump necked cows downwards into the caldera to enjoy grazing for the day. They are the caretakers of this fairy tale land.
  • The Oscar-winning movie Out of Africa filmed in Ngorongoro
    • The Oscar-winning movie Out of Africa was filmed partly in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. One of the scenes where you can spot the crater is when Denys takes off from the Olkurruk airstrip and flies over the Masai Mara and Ngorongoro. Ngorongoro Crater is also referred to as ‗the Garden of Eden‘ due to its dazzling beauty and being a paradise for animals. Later we returned back to the lodge. Dinner and overnight stay in a lodge in Karatu.
  • Overnight Stay : Farms of Dream Lodge or similar in Karatu
  • Meals : Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at Lodge.

Day 9

NGORONGORO – KILIMANJARO

  • Goodbye to Africa.
    • It‘s the time to say goodbye to all the new friends you have made. We hope you take back happy memories of your Discover Africa- Kilimanjaro Masai Mara Tour. We would like you to spare a few minutes of your time to write and tell us how you enjoyed your tour and any suggestions you may have for the future. After the continental breakfast, check out the hotel and you proceed to Arusha and transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport on the back of your home. Kenya Airways flight KQ427 departs to Nairobi at 18.20 hrs and arrives at Nairobi International Airport, Kenya at 19.20 hrs. Later connect Kenya Airways Flight KQ204 to Mumbai @ 20.50 hrs.

Day 10

FLY BACK HOME

  • Arrive Mumbai International Airport at 05.35. Later, I connected the flight to Kochi Airport with sweet memories of Benny‘s Royal Tour‘s Discover Africa- Kilimanjaro – Masai Mara Tour.